PM Modi praises media's role in 'Clean India' mission, says 'you have converted pen into broom'

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who interacted with the media for the first time since assuming office in May, lauded their contribution to his government's 'Clean India' mission, and said they have converted their pens into brooms for a noble cause.

"I believe there are several columnists who have been writing for several years, but are now writing on cleanliness for the first time. I believe it is a great service to the nation. You have converted your pens into brooms, which is a big thing," Prime Minister Modi told media persons at a 'Diwali Milan' function at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) headquarters here.

"I want to express my gratitude to the media and congratulate them for their extensive coverage of cleanliness campaign in India. For the past month, I have been reading so many articles on cleanliness. It is being discussed in the electronic media as well as the social media," he added.

The Prime Minister also said that he wanted to further improve his relations with the media.

"I'm trying to find ways to improve my relations with the media. I am looking for ways to spend time with you all. There are many things that we get to know when we interact directly. Not only information, even vision is exchanged, and that is very important, because you scrutinize everything with your eyes and then write about it," he said.

Prime Minister Modi also recalled the time when he used to wait for media persons to arrive and put out chairs for them.

"There was a time when I used to wait for media persons to arrive and put chairs for you, those were different days. We used to interact openly and I had friendly relations with you all. I gained its advantage in Gujarat," he said.

The Prime Minister also extended Deepavali and Bhai Dooj wishes to the media present at the venue.